Beverage Container with Secondary Opening

ABSTRACT

Embodiments are described of a beverage container having a secondary opening. The secondary opening is provided in addition to a primary opening on the top beverage container and allows the contents of the beverage container to be consumed quickly. The use of this secondary opening allows air to freely flow into the container through one of the openings while the beverage flows out of the other opening. In one embodiment, the secondary opening is placed near the bottom of the container on its siding directly below the primary opening on the top of the container. This allows the user to safely open the secondary opening on the beverage container with ease.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

Embodiments of the present invention relate in general to containers andin particular to a beverage container having a primary and secondaryopening.

2. Description of Related Art

Soft drinks, energy drinks and alcoholic beverages have typically beenwidely distributed and sold in metal and plastic containers. Thesebeverage containers keep the beverages pressurized to maintain theircarbonated quality and flavor during transport. Aluminum cans, as anexample, have become a universal standard used by most major beverageproducers.

In some cases, a user may attempt to drink the beverages of thesecontainers very quickly by puncturing a hole in the side of the beveragecontainer. This is commonly referred to as “shotgunning” the beveragecontainer and may be done with any beverage container, including beers,energy drinks, and soft drinks. The technique has become a popular wayfor users to consume the contents of the beverage very quickly. Creatinga secondary hole on the side of the container in addition to the openingon the top of the container provides the user with two primaryadvantages.

The first advantage is that the secondary hole created by the userallows the beverage to freely flow out while the primary opening on thetop allows air to freely flow into the container to fill the volume leftbehind from the dispensed beverage.

The second advantage follows from the first. When a user drinks abeverage quickly by use only of the normal opening on the top of thecontainer, the beverage tends to fizz and bubble up in the user's mouthas the carbonation within the beverage is released while rapidly flowingout of the single opening. This makes the beverage more difficult todrink and deteriorates its taste as it becomes fizzy and flat. Bycreating a secondary hole on the container, the beverage with all of itsintegrity will freely flow from the container with ease while the airenters the container through the normal opening on top.

Thus, by creating a secondary hole on a beverage container, the consumermay drink the beverage more quickly while maintaining its full integrityand taste.

A common problem with creating a secondary hole on the beveragecontainer or “shotgunning” the beverage container, is that it isinconvenient and dangerous. The process of creating the hole requiresthe user to puncture the hole by any means possible, for example bycutting through the container with a knife or another sharp object.Users must then shape the punctured hole to a size sufficiently largeenough to allow the beverage to freely flow from the container. If thepunctured hole is made too wide however, it may spill on the user whiledrinking. Puncturing the hole in the container also causes thepressurized, carbonated contents of the container to explode onto theuser or others nearby. Furthermore, in the case where the beveragecontainer is made of metal, i.e. aluminum, the cut hole will have sharpedges that may cut the user's fingers and/or mouth while using thesecondary hole to drink the beverage. For these reasons, this process isdangerous and very inconvenient.

Therefore, there is a need for a beverage container having a secondaryopening made accessible to the user safely and with ease.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The embodiments of the present invention provide a beverage containerhaving a secondary opening on the container separate from the primaryopening on the top of the container. The secondary opening may be thesame or different as the primary opening on the top of the container andlocated anywhere on the container so long as it allows the beverage tofreely flow from either the primary opening or secondary opening. Inaddition, the secondary opening may be opened and resealed to allow theuser to close the hole after opening it. It will be appreciated that theprecise variations of shape, type, form, or materials made to create anypart of the container falls within the scope of the invention so long asthe beverage container has a secondary opening that can be safely openedwith ease.

It will also be appreciated that the precise location of the secondaryopening is not to be limited. In one embodiment, the secondary openingis placed on the side of the beverage container, directly below theprimary opening as will be discussed later. However, other embodimentsinclude the secondary opening located anywhere on the container,including on the bottom of the container, so long as it allows thebeverage to freely flow from the container through either opening.

Furthermore, embodiments of the present invention allows for more thanone secondary opening on the beverage container. For example, aplurality of openings may be designed on the beverage container made forsimultaneous or independent use. The number of secondary openings may belimited by the size of the container and therefore larger containerswill be able to facilitate more secondary openings than smallercontainers. In the case that two or more secondary openings are opened,the beverage will flow from the container though each of the openedopenings simultaneously. In this way, multiple consumers can drink froma single beverage container in this case by each using a differentopening on the container. In the case that only one of the secondaryopenings is used independently of the others, the beverage will flowfrom only that single secondary opening.

It is also within the scope of the invention that the type of openingsmay vary and may have various orientations on the container. In somecases, it may be beneficial for the primary and secondary openings to bethe same and in others it may be advantageous for them to be different.Furthermore, in other cases the secondary openings may be rotated toadjust the orientation between the primary and secondary openings. Forexample, it may be useful to design the beverage container for either aright-handed or left-handed user. In this case, the type of primary andsecondary openings may vary and be oriented on the container to bestserve this purpose. Furthermore, the openings may be capable of beingrotated so that one beverage container may facilitate both right-handedor left-handed users. In this case, the type of primary and secondaryopenings may vary and be rotated on the container to best serve thispurpose.

Finally, as described in the previous two paragraphs, the container mayhave a plurality of secondary openings each having a different type andorientation (including rotation), to best serve both right-handed andleft-handed consumers. It should also be considered obvious by thoseskilled in the art to make or use any various combinations of the ideasdisclosed herein. Other objects and advantages of the embodiments of thepresent invention will appear from the following description of theembodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a view of a beverage container according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2A shows a view of a beverage container according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2B shows beverage containing according to another embodiment thatincludes the secondary opening being placed near the top or bottom ofthe beverage container.

FIG. 2C shows a beverage container having the secondary opening placedon the left or right side of the beverage container according to anotherembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3A shows a beverage containing at least two secondary openingslocated above/below each other on the beverage container according toanother embodiment.

FIG. 3B shows a beverage container having a plurality of secondaryopenings located next to each other on the beverage container accordingto another embodiment.

FIG. 4A shows an orientation of the secondary opening in a beveragecontainer with respect to the primary opening for a right-handedconsumer according to an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4B shows an orientation of the secondary opening in a beveragecontainer with respect to the primary opening for a left-handed consumeraccording another embodiment.

FIG. 4C shows an orientation of the secondary opening in a beveragecontainer having a secondary opening having an orientation designed forrotation according to another embodiment of the invention. By rotatingthe orientation of the secondary opening, the beverage container is ableto serve both right-handed and left-handed consumers.

FIG. 5A shows a view of another embodiment of the present invention. Avariety of modifications can be made to the beverage container withinthe scope of the present invention and combinations of any of thefeatures shown in the other drawings may be implemented into one design.This drawing more specifically shows the beverage container in FIG. 1having a plurality of secondary openings as shown in FIG. 3B, eachhaving a different orientation as shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, according toembodiments that may be implemented into one design.

FIG. 5B shows the beverage container as shown in FIG. 1, having aplurality of secondary openings as shown in FIG. 3A, each secondaryopening having a different location as shown in FIGS. 2B and 2C, andeach secondary opening also having different orientations as shown inFIGS. 4A and 4B, according to embodiments that may be implemented inanother design.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

A more detailed description will now describe the embodiments of thepresent invention with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a view of a beverage container according to an embodimentof the present invention. The beverage container 10 comprises a top 11,a primary opening 12, siding 13, a secondary opening 14 and a bottom(not shown). The primary opening 12 and secondary opening 14 should bemade so that the user can safely open the beverage container 10 withease, however many modifications of this invention may includevariations to the precise shape, size, type, materials, andlocations/orientations of the primary opening 12 and secondary opening14. These variations may apply to each part of the beverage container 10as well. All variations or modifications of this sort are consideredwithin the inventive scope of the invention. In addition, the secondaryopening may be opened and resealed to allow the user to close the holeafter opening it. The shape of the beverage container 10 may include allcommonly known beverage container shapes, including standard aluminumcans and variations thereof, as well as plastic and glass bottles.

The size of the beverage container 10 may vary as well. Although theprecise volume of the container is only limited by the consumers abilityto lift and drink the beverage container, most commonly beveragecontainer sizes include 6 oz, 8 oz, 12 oz, 16 oz, 22 oz, 24 oz, 32 oz,and 64 oz in North America as well as 250 ml, 500 ml, 750 ml, and 1liter in Europe. Any volume within reason however can be used for thedesign of the embodiments of the present invention.

The type of primary opening 12 and secondary opening 14 designed mayvary. In different embodiments, the primary opening 12 and secondaryopening 14 may be the same type or different types of openings.

The materials to make the beverage container 10 include any materialscommonly known for making beverage containers including metals, i.e.aluminum, steel, tin, or another composition of metal or metal alloy,plastics, glass, and variants thereof. It is conceivable that othermaterials can be implored for the creation of this invention however theuse of a secondary opening on such a container made from another unknownmaterial would be obvious to those of skill in the art so long as itallows the beverage to flow freely from the container.

The location of the primary opening 12 and secondary opening 14 onbeverage container 10 may vary as shown in FIGS. 2A-2D. The purpose ofthese drawings is not to be exhaustive; rather they are provided toillustrate several of the many variations that may be applied to thepresent invention shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 2A shows the preferred embodiment of beverage container 20 ashaving a primary opening 12 on the top 11 of the container and asecondary opening 24 on the container siding 13 near the bottom.Components 11, 12, and 13 are common to FIGS. 2A-5B and will not bedescribed again. (Note, an exemplary pull-tab is used as a primaryopening 102 in FIGS. 4A-5B as will be more thoroughly described below.)The plane 15 shown in FIG. 2A defines the side from which the user maydrink the beverage. In this embodiment, the primary opening 12 is on thesame plane 15 as the secondary opening 14. For best results, thesecondary opening 24 should be located on the same plane 15 as shown inthe preferred embodiment of beverage container 20.

FIG. 2B shows another embodiment of the present invention, where abeverage container 30 that includes a secondary opening 34 placed midwayon the container siding 13. In this drawing, the secondary opening 34 isshown located closer to the top 11 of the beverage container 30 andshows that the secondary opening 34 may be located near the top 11, inthe middle, or near the bottom (as shown in FIG. 2A) of beveragecontainer 30.

FIG. 2B shows that the secondary opening 34 is not required to belocated on the same plane as the primary opening 12.

Another example to illustrate that the location of the secondary opening44 may vary is shown on beverage container 40 in FIG. 2C. In thisdrawing, the secondary opening 44 is located to the left of the plane 15shown in FIG. 2A.

FIG. 3A shows a beverage container 60 according to another embodiment.The beverage container 60 may have at least two secondary openings 64.The at least two secondary openings 64 may be placed above and beloweach other. FIG. 3A is not intended to limit the scope of the presentinvention and these at least two secondary openings 64 may be locatedanywhere on the beverage container 60.

FIG. 3B shows another embodiment of the present invention having aplurality of openings 74 side-by-side on a beverage container 70. Aspreviously mentioned, this figure is not intended to limit the scope ofthe present invention and these multiple secondary openings 14 may belocated anywhere on the beverage container 70.

A beverage container 80 in FIG. 4A shows a primary opening 102 andsecondary opening 84 as pull-tab openings, as one type of opening thatmay be used, where the secondary tab 84 is oriented with the pull-upportion to the right of the potential opening. The primary opening 102and the secondary opening 84 have an orientation design that may bepreferred by right-handed users. Right-handed users may conveniently usetheir right hand to open the primary opening 102 and left hand to openthe secondary opening 104.

Alternatively, a beverage container 90 in FIG. 4B shows the primaryopening 102 and a secondary opening 94 as pull-tab openings 102 and 94having an orientation designed for left-handed users. Left-handed usersmay prefer using the left hand to open the primary opening 102 and theright hand to open the secondary opening 94.

The orientation of the primary opening 12 and secondary opening 14 ofFIG. 1 may be modified as shown by a beverage container 100 shown inFIG. 4C. As in FIGS. 4A-4B, the use of a pull-tab is meant as an exampleand not to limit the scope of the inventive concept. FIG. 4C shows thebeverage container 100 having a secondary opening 104 capable ofrotation. The secondary opening 104 may be adjusted by right-handed andleft-handed users, according to the user's preference.

In other embodiments, various features of FIGS. 2A-4C may be combined asshown in a beverage container 110 design shown in FIG. 5A. The beveragecontainer 110 comprises several of the previously mentionedmodifications. More specifically, the beverage container 110 has thesimilar features of beverage container 10 in FIG. 1, however itadditionally has more than one secondary opening 114 as described inreference to FIG. 3B as well as each secondary opening 104 having adifferent orientation in relation to the primary opening 102 as shown inFIGS. 4A-4B.

To further illustrate this point, reference is made to FIG. 5B. Abeverage container 120 is shown in FIG. 5B having similar features ofbeverage container 10 in FIG. 1, however in this case, it has more thanone secondary opening 124 as shown in FIG. 3A, each of these secondaryopenings 124 having a different location as described in FIGS. 2B-2C.Additionally, each secondary opening 124 has a different orientationwith respect to the primary opening 102 as shown in FIGS. 4A-4B. Inconclusion, it is within the scope of the inventive concept to apply anynumber of the modifications shown in FIGS. 2A-5B to the embodiment shownin FIG. 1.

In summary, it has been the purpose of this specification to clearly andfully disclose the objects of the present invention. As mentioned,embodiments of the invention may take the form of various embodimentshowever it is the underlining concept of this invention to provide asafe and ease way for users to drink a beverage by use of a secondaryopening, or a plurality thereof, on the beverage container.

From the foregoing it will be appreciated that, although specificembodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes ofillustration, various modifications may be made without deviating fromscope of the invention. Accordingly, embodiments of the invention arenot limited except as by the appended claims.

1. A beverage container comprising: a bottom; a siding on the bottom; atop on the siding; a primary opening on the top that when sealed holds asubstance in liquid form within the beverage container pressurized, theprimary opening structured to provide access to the liquid contained inthe beverage container when opened; a secondary opening on the beveragecontainer that when sealed holds the liquid within the beveragecontainer pressurized and when opened with the primary opening, enablesthe liquid in the container to freely flow from either the primaryopening or the secondary opening.
 2. The container of claim 1, whereinthe secondary opening is located directly below the primary opening onthe siding of the beverage container.
 3. The beverage container of claim1, wherein the primary opening and the secondary opening are a same typeof opening.
 4. The beverage container of claim 1, further comprising aplurality of secondary openings.
 5. The beverage container of claim 1,wherein the orientation of the primary opening with respect to thesecondary opening is designed for a right-handed user.
 6. The beveragecontainer of claim 1, wherein the orientation of the primary openingwith respect to the secondary opening is designed for a left-handeduser.
 7. The beverage container of claim 1, wherein the primary openingand secondary opening each comprise an opening tab that rotates toadjust the orientation of the primary and secondary opening.
 8. Abeverage container comprising: a primary means for opening the top ofthe beverage container that when sealed holds a beverage within thebeverage container pressurized; a secondary means for opening thebeverage container that when sealed holds the beverage within thebeverage container pressurized and when opened permits a beverage tofreely flow from within the beverage container.
 9. A method of accessinga liquid substance housed in a beverage container, the methodcomprising: holding the liquid substance housed in a pressurizedcontainer; providing a first opening to access the liquid in thecontainer; providing a second opening to access the liquid in thecontainer, the second opening increasing the air into the container tocause the liquid to freely flow from either the primary opening or thesecondary opening.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein providing thesecond opening comprises providing the second opening directly below thefirst opening to access the liquid in the container.
 11. The method ofclaim 9 further comprising at least a third opening.
 12. The method ofclaim 9, wherein the first opening and the second opening eachrespectively comprises an opening tab that rotates to adjust theorientation of the first and second openings.